The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of carnation or hardy pink that is grown for use as a flowering plant for pots and containers and for planting in the garden or landscape. The new cultivar is known botanically as Dianthus gratianopolitanus and will be referred to hereinafter by the cultivar name of ‘WICKED WITCH’.
‘WICKED WITCH’ arose as a naturally occurring whole plant sport which the inventor discovered growing in a cultivated border in April 2002 at the inventor's nursery in Raleigh, N.C. The plant had been established while juvenile and nonflowering as the pink-flowered variety Dianthus gratianopolitanus, ‘Feuerhexe’ (not patented). ‘Feuerhexe’ is commonly known in the United States by its translated equivalent ‘Firewitch’. The observed plant bore red flowers and the inventor determined that this observed plant was clearly distinguishable from ‘Feuerhexe’ by its flower color.
‘WICKED WITCH’ exhibits pronounced dense compact habit, blue-green foliage, and rich magenta flowers. It blooms profusely in the spring with a second bloom in the fall. The foliage forms a dense mat spreading to 15 cm to 20 cm in height and width.
‘WICKED WITCH’ differs from its parent plant in the color of its petals. The petals of ‘Feuerhexe’ are colored bright pink at maturity. The petals of ‘WICKED WITCH’ are colored red-purple at maturity. Like its parent ‘Feuerhexe’, ‘WICKED WITCH’ shares extreme durable and landscape toughness forming dense highly branched mats of foliage which endure during periods of excessive summer heat. ‘WICKED WITCH’ also closely resembles Dianthus ‘Red Dwarf’ (U.S. Pat. No. 14,437) and Dianthus ‘Devon Xera’ (U.S. Pat. No. 14,895). However, the petal colors of ‘WICKED WITCH’ fall into the red-purple class while ‘Red Dwarf’ and ‘Devon Xera’ are classified as red.
Asexual reproduction of ‘Wicked Witch’ was first accomplished by the inventor in 2004 in a cultivated area of Raleigh, N.C. The method of asexual propagation used was basal shoot cuttings. Since that time the characteristics of the new cultivar have been determined stable and are reproduced true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.